More Articles

The Dispatch E-Edition

All current subscribers have full access to Digital D, which includes the E-Edition and
unlimited premium content on Dispatch.com, BuckeyeXtra.com, BlueJacketsXtra.com and
DispatchPolitics.com.
Subscribe
today!

Ohio regulators have approved a high-voltage power line near Sunbury, a plan that drew protests
from some residents.

American Electric Power, which will build and operate the 3.1-mile line, has said the project
will improve the flow of electricity in parts of Franklin and Delaware counties and make the entire
system more reliable.

The Ohio Power Siting Board approved the plan, subject to 37 conditions that AEP must meet. Most
of the conditions are related to the environmental effects of the project and communication with
residents.

AEP will spend $4.8 million on the line, starting at a substation southeast of Sunbury and
running northeast to meet an existing high-voltage line north of the village.

Last March, the board approved AEP’s proposal to build the substation at the south end of the
line.

AEP had suggested two possible routes for the 138-kilovolt power line. The option approved by
the board is slightly longer and to the east of the one not selected.

An AEP spokeswoman had no immediate comment. The company has previously said it would like to
begin building the line next spring or summer.

Two opponents testified at a hearing in May, among a larger group of residents who objected.

“Quite frankly, we don’t want to have that as part of our view,” Douglas Smith said at the
hearing. The line would be adjacent to his Hartford Road property.

None of the opponents could be reached for comment yesterday evening.
Dispatch reporter Pamela Engel contributed to this story.